Hull Masonic Hall, Dagger Lane

The following article entitled ‘Hunt for Charlie the ghost at Hull Masonic Hall in Dagger Lane’ was published in the Hull Daily Mail on 22 November 2014.  It concerned a paranormal investigation to raise money for charity.

GHOST-hunters will uncover the secrets hidden within the walls of one of Hull’s oldest buildings. Paranormal Scientific Investigators (PSI) has been given access to all areas of the Masonic Hall and is inviting the public to join the search for the spooky and strange.

Used as the headquarters for the Freemasons and dating back to 1782, the building in Dagger Lane is adorned with old furniture, regalia, swords and paintings.

Paranormal investigator Mark Lindsay has hunted for ghosts there six times.

He said: “There have been quite a few things that have happened in the building and a lot of the items inside there are quite old, to the point it looks like a museum, except it is still in use to this day.

“I have done an investigation at the hall before and there have been a few sightings.

“People have seen an old gentleman sitting at a table, but when they have walked into the room he has vanished.

“We have had some unusual readings on our meters that we couldn’t explain and electromagnetic fields we couldn’t find the cause of. I have seen shadows that, when I have gone to investigate, have gone.”

The Freemasons are among the world’s oldest societies. The hall was built on the grounds of an old chapel, which dated from the thirteenth century and it is also thought there was once an abattoir next door.

On previous hunts, there have been reports of a ghost nicknamed “Charlie” and people have reported being pushed into a room by an unknown force.

Mr Lindsay, who recently recovered from non-Hodgkin lymphoma, is holding the event to raise money for Macmillan Cancer Support.

His team will set up cameras inside the building and hand out equipment, including night-vision goggles.

He said: “We can never guarantee the public will see anything supernatural, but because so much has happened there in the past, we think it could be likely.”